Houston Rockets point guard Jeremy Lin is reportedly leaving Nike in favor of signing a shoe deal with rival sportswear company adidas.

According to Chris Haynes of CSN Northwest, citing an anonymous source, the announcement of the agreement between Lin and adidas is set to come on Friday.

Nike extended its contract with the then-New York Knicks guard in February 2012 "in an effort to guard him from being stolen by rival companies," per Nina Mandell of the New York Daily News citing Beijing Business Today.

Lin was a hot commodity during his run of "Linsanity" with the Knicks. In 35 games played for New York in 2011-12, he averaged 14.6 points, 6.2 assists and 3.1 rebounds per game.

His breakout campaign was highlighted by a seven-game win streak, during which he posted a 38-point, seven-assist, four-rebound effort against the Los Angeles Lakers.

 

 

Although the mystique of "Linsanity" has all but worn off now that Lin is playing in Houston, he's actually playing far more efficient basketball for the Rockets. He's averaging 14.1 points, 4.2 assists and 2.6 rebounds per game while shooting 48 percent from the field and 37 percent from three-point range (both career highs).

The former Harvard standout has been overshadowed by James Harden and Dwight Howard this year, but his worldwide popularity hasn't waned. In the second returns of 2014 NBA All-Star balloting, Lin ranked fourth among Western Conference guards with 358,725 votes (trailing only Kobe Bryant, Chris Paul and Stephen Curry).

All in all, this is a great signing for adidas, as they'll add one of the NBA's most popular athletes.